The Backfire

Admin Posts : 196 Join date : 2022-01-12 Age : 25

The day had been long, it felt like it dragged along like walking through sand. The young boy had just gotten off the bus and happily ran inside his home. He called for his parents, but he received no answer in return. He dropped his school bag by the front door, going to search for them through the house.

He didn't find them, but he did find a small note on the counter by the microwave. He picked it up, letting his eyes scan over the words written there.

"Dear Ronan,

Your father and I got calls to go to work tonight, we will be back late into the night. There are leftovers in the fridge, just heat them for a minute or so when you get hungry. Make sure that you do your homework and shower, and go to bed on time! We will come and see you when we get home.

Love, Mom."

The boy, Ronan, smiled a bit to himself. He had the house to himself for the night. Yes! He could do what he wanted while his parents were gone. This was going to be a fun night.

Making quick work of him, the boy grabbed one of the dining room chairs and dragged it over to the counter. He used it to climb onto the counter and open the cabinet. That's where he found the stash he knew would be hiding there. His parents' sweets stash.

He grabbed for the cookies, quickly jumping off the counter with a victory giggle. He ran for the living room, throwing himself on the couch. While stuffing several cookies into his mouth, he reached out and grabbed the remote. Clicking on the TV, picking cartoons, of course, he relaxed against the back of the couch.

About half an hour into his cartoons, the sudden sound of the emergency broadcast alarm caused whatever cookies were left to spill over his lap.

"Come on what the heck," he mumbled under his breath annoyed,

Ronan grumbled as he grabbed the remote. He tried to click through the channels, but each one had the same broadcast on the screen. He guessed he wouldn't be able to avoid it to watch something else.

He sighed and tossed the remote onto the couch beside him, leaning up and staring at the tv. It was telling everyone around to pay attention and listen, to lock your doors and windows. But it wasn't saying anything as to why.

Just then the screen flickered, and popped back on, showing a balding older man, holding a microphone. He was standing in the middle of a two-way street, cars speeding behind him. People seemed to be running this way and that, screaming and pushing each other out of their way. The man's hands seemed to be trembling.

"I've been getting news that crazy people are on the loose. There seems to have been an escape from our local hospital of a mental patient. It is reported that the patient attacked workers of the hospital, ripping the flesh from wherever they could get a hold of it.

It is believed that the man was infected with some sort of disease, for the hospital staff he has come in contact with have also gone crazy. Law enforcement has been called to take care of the problem, but I have been informed that they were attacked as well.

People have gotten word about the attack, and have been trying to rush to their homes as fast as possible, as you can see behind me," he pointed to the mild chaos behind him. "I heard that this is something to not worry about too much, this is just another crazy person trying to cause a problem.

But it has been recommended that you lock yourself in your homes, lock the doors, and your windows. Make sure that you do not leave your homes until further notice. Please stay tuned to the TV, or radio for any further information.

Thank you this has been Daniel Campbell with the Channel Five news broadcasting system."

The broadcast didn't end as the man wiped the sweat from his brow with the back of his hand, letting out a shaky hand. His mouth started moving with words that couldn't be heard, he seemed to be talking to the person behind the camera.

His head suddenly shot to the side, as he stepped back in defense. He raised his hands in front of his chest, before another person slammed into him, knocking him to the ground. The camera shifted slightly, rocking side to side like it had been hit.

A man, who could be assumed as the cameraman ran out, grabbing at the person who had tackled the news speaker. He pulled on their clothes, trying to remove them, but they weren't budging from where they were.

Suddenly then another body suddenly slammed into the cameraman, knocking him back into the camera. It tumbled to the ground, the lense cracking, showing a broken sky.

The screen went black once more, before showing the emergency broadcast once again.

Ronan stared with his mouth wide open, confused about what the hell had just happened. What the hell was going on?
----------------------

Hello everyone, this is going to be an apocalyptic Role-Play of sorts. Most likely zombies, since that's one of my favorite tropes. Considering that this is an apocalyptic RP, there will be Cussing, Blood, Violence, Gore, and possible drug use. So you are warned.

This is an open RP, so anyone can join as they like. You just have to fill out this character sheet below.

Full Name: Characters Full Name
Nickname: What does the character go by
Age: How old are they?
Gender: What do they identify as?
Sexuality: What do you prefer?
Skills: What are they good at?
Personality: what are they like?
General looks: Can be picture or description.
General Clothing Style: Can be picture or description.
Preferred Weapons: Picture or description.
Anything else physical: Tattoos, piercings, etc.

Subject: Re: The Backfire Sun Mar 05, 2023 9:45 pm

Full Name: Jedediah October
Nickname: Jed or October
Age: 23
Gender: Male
Sexuality: Pansexual
Skills: He's good with a knife, pistol and rifle. He's a bit new to shot guns as he's only just got his hands on one. He knows basic first aid.
Personality: He's quite cold to those new around him at first. He can be kinda goofy and awkward when he warms up to you. He tends to only look out for himself as trying to look after someone else in this world will only get you killed.
General looks: The Backfire B88d7f11dc8a06d1615608c84aef120e

The Backfire B88d7f11dc8a06d1615608c84aef120e

The Backfire 7b4650c751fcaeacdd303a439d9bc811

General Clothing Style: The Backfire 60659fdabdd1001dc34d2fb7ab357c25

The Backfire C71bd8d65dbd687700913bb0a8882ee0

The Backfire Bc0888dd7bc932665d28bd16cc9de26b

Preferred Weapons: Stiletto knife, standard pistol, bat and rifle.
Anything else physical: He's got both his ears pierced and his right ear has it pierced up the top. He has the left bottom lip pierced with a blank ring. He doesn't have any noticeable tattoos except for a white snowflake on his left inner wrist.

Admin Posts : 196 Join date : 2022-01-12 Age : 25

The Backfire A5c9365290a40b0efe44232479922531

Full Name: Jude Cypress
Nickname: Jude or Cy
Age: 19
Gender: Male
Sexuality: Bisexual
Skills: Machine work, first aid, bow usage, and gymnastics
Personality: He's normally very quiet and to himself, does prefer to travel and work by himself. But will attach himself to others when times call for it. When he knows someone well enough, he becomes loud, outspoken, and extremely friendly.
General Looks: [One][Two][Three]
General Clothing: [One][Two] [Three]
Preferred Weapons: Cross bow, regular compound bow, crowbar (when in a pinch), and dual pistols.
Other Physical Details: Has his tongue pierced, His nose double pierced, and has a whole sleeve of patchwork drawings.

Subject: Re: The Backfire Sun Mar 05, 2023 10:51 pm

Jedediah grunted as he pulled on the rope above him. He had to make sure it was totally secure before using it as he did not want to fall to his death. That would be a stupid way to go in this world. He scanned the area around him again, not wanting to get jumped by any silent infected. Deciding he was safe, he started to heave himself up the rope. He grunted in the effort several times as he made his way up the rope. He pulled himself up about two stories before reaching the top. He rolled onto the ground away from the edge as again, he didn't feel like falling to his death today. He looked to his right to scan the area for any infected. He thankfully didn't see any as he sat up. He let one leg hang over the edge as he looked at view around him.

He checked the tape on his arms before getting up and looked around the floor, finding a still intact room with a decent looking bed in it. He nodded to himself and inspected further. He found a somewhat ok looking table and set of two chairs as well as some other good lookouts. "This might actually work." He mumbled to himself. "I'll have to think of a more secure way to get up and down from here..." He muttered, setting his bag on the table and rooted through his things before find a pad of paper and a pen. He roughly drew a floor plan of the space he had and roughly sketched what he could do with the space.

Once he was happy with what he thought would work, he got to work, moving things out of the way and setting up pulley systems as well as a crud alarm system. He doubted that anyway would be able to make their way up here but one could never be too careful.

A few hours later the sun started to set, he was happy with the progress he'd made. He had removed the pillow and blanket and sheets from the bed and replaced them with the sleep bag he had. He didn't really want to use them without knowing if they were riddled with mould or not. He flopped back onto the bed and switched off his torch and dozed off.

Admin Posts : 196 Join date : 2022-01-12 Age : 25

Night was approaching, and fast. And you didn’t want to be stuck outside once the sun went down, it made them faster. Especially during the summer, when the nights were a perfect temperature. Not to cold and not to hot.

Jude had been combing through the streets of a long abandoned shopping avenue. He didn’t bother checking out what was inside the shops. There would be no point. They had been long raided for what they had to offer.

He held the strap of his bag tightly in his right hand, while the left he kept locked around an old M1911 that he had found in an abandoned house several months ago.

He needed to find somewhere to claim for the night, then he would move on in the morning. His eyes shot around scanning the area for anything that could possibly work, until he came up to a large apartment building.

The front doors were smashed in, but it was blocked on the inside by what he could only assume was the second floor. There would be no way in through there, but he had to find someway. This was the closest thing he could get to, and he didn’t have much time left.

He approached slowly keeping an eye out for infected as he moved, listening their tell tale moans and snapping off their teeth. As he grew closer, that’s when he noticed something.

A rope.

Just a single rope hanging from what he could guess was the fourth story, maybe the fifth. How did it get there, and the rope itself didn’t look that old. Maybe someone forget it?

Well who cares, it seemed to be the only way inside the building at this moment. He slipped his pistol into its holder wrapped around his thigh, before grabbing hold of the rope. He started hauling himself up, thankful that he was wearing slip resistant gloves.

It took him about the time that the sun took to finished setting behind the mountains, to make it to the end of the rope. He hauled himself over the edge, rolling to a crouch into the middle of a room.

He barely got a good look before a weird sounding alarm starting clanging in his ears, causing him to quickly back peddle. He hit the back of his knees against the ledge but quickly caught himself before he fell over.

Shit! Someone was still here!

Subject: Re: The Backfire Mon Mar 06, 2023 12:55 am

Jedediah was just about to actually start getting from sleep when he heard the jangle of the bells he'd set up as an alarm. Are you fucking kidding? He thought as he jumped to his feet, in boxers and a tank top with duct tape wrapped around his legs and arms still. He hadn't bothered to take it off yet. He grabbed the shot gun he'd recently acquired though it didn't have any bullets. You fucking idiot, I can't believe I forgot to pull the rope back up! He cursed himself for his stupidity.

He kicked open the door to his makeshift bedroom and cocked the shot gun, walking out into the area where the alarm had stopped now. He raised the shotgun and kept it trained on the guy that had made it up the rope. He was impressed that he made it all the way up here. "Who are you? What do you want?" He barked, his silver blue eyes trained on the boy in front of him. His silver hair, pulled back in a messy half pony.

Admin Posts : 196 Join date : 2022-01-12 Age : 25

Jude was mentally kicking himself. He should have been more observant on where he was. Why would an almost brand new rope be hanging from a building if it wasn’t being used?

He jerked to the side away from the bells causing them to stop, and he couldn’t help but wonder. Was someone really here or was it an old trap someone had left a while ago and never disarmed.

He found his answer when he heard the cocking of a shot gun, and turning to find himself staring down the barrel of one.

Double fuck.

He raised his right hand showing that he didn’t have anything weapons wise in his hand. He didn’t raise the other one, for it was the only thing holding him up from falling back onto the alarm. He didn’t want to keep the thing running, for he didn’t know if there were any infected without hearing range.

How the hell was he going to do this? He wasn’t much of a talker, at least not by choice. He didn’t talk, period. He hasn’t since this whole apocalypse broke out, and he watched his parents get torn apart in front of him.

He waved his hand around in front of his half hidden face, trying to gesture that he meant no harm. He doubted it was coming across well. So he used his other hand to push himself off the ground, quickly rolling away from the alarm, throwing his legs out to jump to feet again.

That’s when he started trying to sign, with what he had learned from a deaf survivor he camped with for a couple months.

I don’t mean any harm, I just wanted to find shelter for the night. He tried to plead his case. He highly doubted that this man knew anything about sign language, it didn’t help he wasn’t the best at it.

But he figured even if he did, it was hard to trust someone who was strapped in head to toe in full tactical gear, with easy to reach weapons.

Subject: Re: The Backfire Mon Mar 06, 2023 1:49 am

Jedediah sighed, his head hanging down for a second as the man in front of him tried to very badly sign at him. He lifted his head back up and walked over to him and pushed the boy's hood back with the shot gun so he could at least see his face. Hey the kid was cute but that wasn't going to save him. He lifted the gun to rest back on his shoulder. "Alright, I see that you are quite heavily armed and know very bad sign language but I'm assuming you're trying to say that you're looking for shelter tonight?" He asked, rubbing his eyes with his free hand.

"Look I don't normally just let any stranger crash at my place that I don't know but I did leave that rope down there for anyone to climb." He grumbled, walking past him and quickly pulled the rope up, resting the gun against the wall while he did it. After he secured the rope up top, he picked the gun up and started walking back to his room. "Look you can crash on the floor but don't steal my shit or I will push you off." He called before shutting the door behind him.

He set the gun down by the bed and fell onto it with a whump. What was he doing? The kid is clearly armed and skilled enough to take him out in his sleep. Was he just lonely? He'd been by himself for so long. It would be nice I guess to have company for a little bit. He sighed and rolled onto his side, rubbing the snowflake tattoo on his wrist before trying to get some sleep.

Admin Posts : 196 Join date : 2022-01-12 Age : 25

There wouldn’t be much to see of Jude’s face when his good was removed from his head. The lower half of his face, his nose to his chin, was covered with a black face mask. The only think he would be able to see is his hair, which was pulled into a small ponytail, and his black eyes.

Said eyes lit up when the man said he could stay here for the night, all be it on the floor. But he wasn’t going to complain. Not when he didn’t have anywhere else to go. He bowed his head to the man as a way of saying thanks.

He found himself into tightly squeezed corner of the far off wall. He pulled the hood back over his head, so it covered his eyes. He stuck his hands into the pockets of his jacket before closing his eyes.

He looked like just a black ball of cloth, in a sitting position. But it was more comfortable than a lot of places he’s had to sleep the last couple nights. As long as he had walls around him to protect him from the infected he was happy.
—————

The morning came slowly, slower than it ever seemed before the apocalypse started. It always dragged out as long as it could, making it seem like years before the sun finally starting flying over the horizon.

Jude twitched with a stray ray of sunlight found its way right into his eyelids. He tried to squirm away from it, but he couldn’t seem to get away from it so he gave up after a few tries.

He opened his tired eyes, blinking a few times to clear his foggy vision. Where was he again?

Right oh yeah he had climbed into a building that he thought was empty, and fell almost face first into the barrel of a shot gun.

Remembering the man from last night, Jude turned his head looking at the man who looked to still be asleep. As quickly as he could, he removed his backpack. He started quietly digging through the pocket till he found what he was looking for.

A pack of a large honey bun. He had found a whole stash of them a while back. They were a tad expired but not like you could be exactly picky during these times.

Quietly as he could, he made his way over the sleeping form. Gently he set the honey bun down beside the bed, making sure to put it where he would see it. He didn’t want him to step on it and squish it.

He quickly made his way back to his corner, and fished out another bun for himself. He smiled under the mask at it, slowly pulling it down. He hide his face under the hood as he ate, shifting more towards the corner as if trying to hide.

Subject: Re: The Backfire Mon Mar 06, 2023 2:21 pm

Jed grumbled in his sleep, rolling onto his side as Jude walked over to set the bun on his bedside table. "No... Don't go that way...." He muttered in his sleep, frowning the lines of his face creasing. He muttered something else but it was unintelligible to Jude's ears. He groaned and rolled over again.

By the time Jude had made his way back to his corner, Jed's eyes shot open and he sat up right. He was slightly panting from the dream he had before looking over and saw the bun on the bed side. He frowned and rubbing his eyes with the palms of his friends. He groaned and got up, grabbing the bun and took a mouthful, nodding at the somewhat good flavour. He walked out of his room, stretching and looked at the boy in the corner.

"Thanks for breakfast." He muttered and flopped down at the table before gesturing to the other chair. "Sit if you want." He said before yawning and rubbing his eyes again and proceeded to eat his breakfast. He pushed the paper and pencil he was using yesterday to the chair that he said Jude could use. "Why don't you tell me your name because I don't think you sign well enough to say what it is." He muttered, looking very drowsy still.

Admin Posts : 196 Join date : 2022-01-12 Age : 25

Jude had finished eating by the time the male had woken, and was still sitting in the corner. His arms were wrapped around his knees, and he was just staring into space thinking about random things.

He looked over at the male when he walked over the table, happy that he was eating the bun. He was glad he didn’t just throw it away, that would have been such a waste.

Then he got invited to sit beside him, and that’s when he hesitated. On one hand the man had let him spend the night with him, but they started out with Jude getting a shot gun pointed straight at his face.

Slowly he stood up from where he was curled up in the corner, making sure his mask was covering his face. He made his way over to the table, sitting down slowly staring at the piece of paper in front of him.

He supposed that this would be easier than his signing. He knew he wasn’t the best at it, but he had only been learning for three months before his traveling buddy died. Since then he tired to practice what he learned, but trying to teach yourself sign language without someone to help. Well that was almost impossible.

Jude reached out grabbing the pencil, gently writing down on the paper Jude Cypress. Thank you for letting me stay. He won’t on the paper. Am I allowed to know your name or?

Subject: Re: The Backfire Mon Mar 06, 2023 8:11 pm

Jed eyes tracked the other boys movements as he walked over to the table, one of his legs propped against the table the other under the table. He was still in his boxers and tank top with the duct tape wrapped around his limbs. He watched him write before looking at the paper to see what he'd written.

He nodded and finished off the bread before saying, "No problemo and the names Jedediah." He said leaning back in his chair. He wiped his hands on his shirt before hopping up to grab his drink bottle he'd left on a counter that was still in pretty good shape.

He took a swig before sitting down again. "Tell me or maybe I should say write me, where are you headed?" He asked, watching Jude with his silver blue eyes. "Also what made you think that no one was up here?" People usually don't just leave perfectly good rope hanging around if they're not using it." He said, chewing of his thumb.

Admin Posts : 196 Join date : 2022-01-12 Age : 25

Headed somewhere? Now that was something he hadn’t considered in a long time. It had been quite some time since he had a place in mind. He had given up hope of finding anywhere that he’ll hadn’t broken loose. There was no point in searching anymore.

Jude stared down at his lap, where his fingers were intertwined with each other. The kindness of the man was still taking him by surprise. No one was nice anymore. Let alone “here stay the night with me, and tell me about yourself” nice. They always wanted something for their hospitality, and that something was never good.

He picked up the pencil again, the lead scratching against the paper as he wrote.

Nowhere. I’m headed nowhere. I got no place to go to, I’m just a wanderer living day by day.

He was about to set the pencil down, when he was asked another question. A very valid question mind you. He had thought about that when he saw the rope hanging there. But it had been too late in the day to really process it to much. He figured he could handle whatever waited for him at the top.

He just didn’t expect there to be a make shift alarm system waiting for him. He was glad that the loud noise didn’t seem to bring in any unwanted visitors during the night.

Never mind that, why did you let me stay here? It’s obvious that you don’t like to be around people, I can tell by the look on your face. You look inconvenienced.

He step the pencil back on the table, sliding the paper back over to the man, giving him a hard look.

Subject: Re: The Backfire Mon Mar 06, 2023 8:58 pm

Jed watched as the other boy started writing again. He watched him carefully as he wrote before pausing at his second question. He was curious to see what he had to say, or write he supposed.

He read his first answer, nodding. "Same I was like that for a while since everything went to shit." He read the second answer and couldn't help but laugh a bit. "Well I've been alone for a long time, don't really tend to like other people as you've already gathered. To be honest, it's been kinda lonely. I have my reasons for being alone but it's nice to chat with someone every once in a while " He said, sighing as he let his head fall back and stared up at the ceiling above him.

"I'm sure you could possibly relate..." He sighed again. "I'm assuming your not deaf since you can hear me and are terrible at sign language." He said, still staring at the ceiling. You don't need to tell me why you can't speak, I get everyone has the boundaries and such. Just interesting I guess..." He said before getting up.

"Right um I don't know what you want to do now but I'm gonna get dressed and head down. No peaking." He said, heading back into his room and shut the door behind him.

Admin Posts : 196 Join date : 2022-01-12 Age : 25

Why did the man keep saying he sucked at signing. He knew that, how about instead of constantly talking about it, how about he taught him since he seemed to know so much.

He huffed to himself, staying in the chair when the male went to go change. It was true though, what we he going to do now? It wasn’t like he needed to stay with the man, he had o obligation to be here.

But being with someone else seemed like it would be better than going off on your own. It was not always better, but it was good to have someone there to watch your back when you got into trouble. But on the same note, they could also stab it.

He hadn’t been alone for long after this whole thing started. His parents had survived with him, and for several years they continue to stay together. He was happy, even though the whole world had literally turned into a horror movie.

That was until his parents, who were kind, had taken into a man who had been hurt. They didn’t want to leave him out to die like an animal. So they had taken him in, and helped treat him wounds. They fed him, and even let him use some of their supplies.

But the man had wanted more, and by more he wanted everything they had. All their weapons, food, water. He had tried to take it by force, but his father wasn’t going to let him take all they had to survive. That’s where he had messed up.

The man was way bigger than his father, and easily over powered him. He had shot Jude’s father in the leg, and his mother in the spine. He left a 16 year old Jude there watching the whole thing.

He should have tried to fight back, to help his parents but he was too scared to even move. Even while the man had opened the door to their makeshift home, letting in the infected the had gathered from all the noise the whole fight had caused.

He father had covered his body with his own, while the rotting corpses torn them both apart. They had managed to get off a deep scratch across his mouth and cheek through the whole feasting, leaving a deep scar that would have joker fans excited.

He could still hear their screams of agony at night sometimes when he tried to sleep.

He hasn’t spoken a word since that time. He wasn’t sure if he had forgetting how, or if something else happened to him. But he didn’t care, he spent his years along meeting up with strangers, stealing their things while they had their backs turned, or while they were asleep.

It wasn’t the best way to be, but it kept him alive during these times.

He was so lost in his thoughts that he was still sitting on the same spot when they make re-emerged. His head snapped up to look up, realizing himself he hadn’t moved.

He didn’t know what to do now, it would be nice to have some company, but at the same time he wasn’t the best around people anymore.

Subject: Re: The Backfire Mon Mar 06, 2023 10:07 pm

Jed pulled the jeans he was wearing yesterday on, hopping for leg to leg, trying to keep his balance as he pulled them on. He grabbed a some what fresh long sleeve shirt that had some random band logo on it and grabbed his boots and made his way back into the kitchen? Living room? He wasn't sure yet what it would be. He wasn't surprised the other one was still there but he looked a bit out of it when he walked out of his room.

"Hey Jude, I'm not going to hurt you or anything alright? The gun wasn't even loaded to be honest." He said, flopping back into his chair and pulled some socks on before pulling the boots on.

He sighed, scratching his head and sat up once he'd finished putting his boots on. "Look I don't normally do this but you seem a bit lost, if you want you can crash here a little longer if you have nowhere to be. I really wouldn't mind the company and help setting this place up. But you do need to pull your own weight around here. I don't expect you to free load and no stealing my shit. You seem to look the type to have sticky fingers. Again I will not hesitate to push you off the edge " He said, looking him in the eyes.

He stood up and grabbed his backpack and started walking to the ledge, grabbing the rope. "Right, you coming or are you going to just sit there all day?" He asked, looking at him.

Admin Posts : 196 Join date : 2022-01-12 Age : 25

Jude had been chewing on his nail, when he heard his name. He turned his head to look at the male, listening to him talk.

Wait what!? The gun wasn’t loaded!? What the hell was that? He did have to admit that it was a smart technique, not one these days are going to question if whether the gun pointed at them was loaded or not.

When he was invited out, he jumped out of the chair, knocking it down in the process. He started fidgeting about it, seemingly upset that he tipped it. With more careful movements that anyone would use, he pulled the chair back up. He even tucked it back into place under the table.

He quickly ran to the corner where all his stuff was, quickly gathering it up. He couldn’t believe he was allowed to stay here. He was trying to hide his excitement, not wanting to come off as too much.

Jude quickly followed the man down the rope, landing on his feet at the bottom. He looked around, taking in what was around him. He could barely see what was around the night before, the sun having not enough light at the time.

But now he could see a complete desolate he’ll scape. Dead bodies littered the ground, covered in broken glass. Some missing limbs, and others with their heads smashed in. Almost every store seemed to be broken into, leaving almost nothing of value behind.

Jude scanned around, looking for any signs of live, even the dead kind. He saw a couple hobbling around in the distance, but they were far enough away that they shouldn’t notice the two men.

He turned his gaze to the man, giving him a look of “what’s your plan now?”

Subject: Re: The Backfire Mon Mar 06, 2023 11:14 pm

Jed made his way down the rope first, looping it around him to lower himself down quickly. Once he was on the ground he gave Jude a thumbs up to go down. He scanned the area as he waited for Jude to make his way down. "Right so most of the shops around here have been raided to shit. We'll have to go a bit further before we find anything. I saw a mall near here that might have some good shit in it still." He said, looking back at Jude.

"You good with going to check it out with me?" He asked, pulling a pistol out and checked it to make sure it was working. He had a bat with nails in it strapped to his backpack and had donned a handkerchief around his mouth and nose while waiting for Jude. He'd also tied his shoulder length hair up into a bun to get it out of his eyes.

Admin Posts : 196 Join date : 2022-01-12 Age : 25

Jude stared at the male, turning his head to look in the direction he was talking about. He nodded his head when he was asked if he was okay with heading that way. If it meant he could possibly get some more ammo for his pistols and bows, then he would be down to at least try.

He pulled out his dual pistols, releasing the mags to check how he was on ammo, before clicking them back into place. He started walking towards the direction of the mall, keeping one pistol in his right hand, while the other one rested in its holster. He only likes to carry one, so he had a free hand just in case he needed it.

He didn't think this was the best idea in general. He could remember when life was normal and when the infected were nothing but fiction. People would say hiding out in a mall was never a good idea. There were too many people, and it didn't have much food supply. Malls mostly consisted of clothing and trinkets. He hoped that his mall had something close to a gun shop, or at the very left a farmer's store. Those normally sold guns and or ammo.

Jude's eyes darted left and right as he walked, making sure not to focus on one spot for too long. He had been alone for too long, to not learn to keep himself open to attacks.

Subject: Re: The Backfire Mon Mar 06, 2023 11:59 pm

Jed was going to take lead but Jude seemed to know what he was doing to be followed behind him, keeping an eye on their size and trying to be quiet as they walked.

"I didn't see any infected last night." He said in a hushed tone. "But that doesn't mean that none wandered over this way in the middle of the night so keep eyes." He said, looking around as they made their way to the mall.

He looked at the big double doors at the entrance that had been long boarded up before looking for a side entrance, not thinking it would be wise to go through the front doors. He cursed when he couldn't find one before looking up at the roof. It didn't look too high. "Watch me." He said, kneeling to rifle through his bag and pulled out a grappling hook with rope attached to it. He put his backpack on again before jogging over to the wall. He swung it around a couple times to build up momentum before letting it free. It flew up and onto the rope. He pulled on it until it found purchase in the roof.

He gave it a couple hefty tugs before being satisfied when it didn't budge. "Alright, I'll go up first and then I'll watch you on the way up." He said, looking at Jude before starting to climb up the rope, his muscles flexing with the effort.

Admin Posts : 196 Join date : 2022-01-12 Age : 25

Good arm, Jude thought as he watched Jed throw the grappling hook, and landed it on the first try. He faced his back towards the rope, scanning around for any threats as Jed climbed the rope to the building. He wasn't about to let someone or something sneak up on them, not on his watch.

He turned his head around at the male when he finally climbed the whole way up. He reached out and grabbed the rope, looking around one last time and checking his back. Once he deemed it was safe enough, he started climbing up the rope. He had no problem climbing it, pulling himself up it with ease. It wasn't long before he swiftly landed on the platform, moving with almost no sound.

Jude looked around, scanning the area with trained eyes, his hand grabbing hold of his pistol again. He could hear groaning and growling in the distance. He could hear the scuffling of dragging feet. There were some nearby, but where exactly he didn't know. The sounds were echoing off each other, making it sound like it was coming from every direction.

Subject: Re: The Backfire Tue Mar 07, 2023 12:52 am

Jed did a quick look around on the roof before giving Jude a thumbs up when it was clear. He watched Jude and their surroundings as he climbed. He was impressed with his agility in climbing up this quickly. He gathered up the rope and grappling hook when Jude was up. He didn't want to have anymore stragglers.

Jed led the way to the fire escape door in the roof, moving quietly with the bat in hand. The gun was more efficient but bullets were rare and the bat was quieter. He crept over to the door before putting his ear to the door and listened. He could hear distant groaning and moaning. Satisfied that they were far away enough he tried the handle.

The was surprised when the knob turned. He would of sworn it would of been locked. He shrugged and slowly opened the door, peering Infor any trap. When he didn't see any, he opened the door all the way and slowly crept into the stair well. He checked the stairs before waving Jude in.

Admin Posts : 196 Join date : 2022-01-12 Age : 25

Jude followed closely behind Jed, holding his gun tight, and darting his head all around. He waited until Jed found it safe enough to enter the room, following him inside when he said so.

They wandered around quietly for a few minutes, scanning around making sure to keep their head low. But that's when he noticed it. He shot out his hand, wrapping his fingers around Jed's wrist and pulling him down behind a counter. He shoved them into the hiding spot slipping in beside him but kept his head out enough to where he could see.

Jude didn't give Jed a chance to talk, before he pushed a finger to the lips hidden under the mask, pointing behind the counter they were hiding behind. That's when they would hear a loud thump, followed by a squelching sound. It happened again, but more of the sound of metal hitting tile.

"C'mon man you've been doing this for the past hour, ain't cha bored," a man's voice, with a deep southern accent, sounded through the room.

There was a loud laugh, with the sound of squelching and scraping. "Don't tell me you feel sorry these undead freaks? Are you going soft on me old man?" a different voice said.

"No, but we a've to get back to camp soon, member we are only allowed out for certain periods a time. It's th' rules."

The man laughed again slamming whatever metal tool he was using on the floor again, this time the tile shattered under the force of the blow. "Fuck the rules, they don't get to boss me around! I'm the only one who can tell me what to do! If you want to go back you are more than welcome to. I'm going to stay here and knock a couple more heads."

Jude suddenly lost his grip on the wall of the counter, falling on his butt. His hands were shaking violently, his black eyes wide as he stared out toward the men.

It's him. It was that man. He was here. He finally ran into him again; he could get his revenge. But then why were his hands shaking, why did it feel like he could barely breathe? He tried to stand up, but his legs gave from under him, causing him to fall. He made sure to catch himself so he didn't make much noise.

What the hell was wrong with him?!

Subject: Re: The Backfire Tue Mar 07, 2023 2:54 am

Jed was about to round the corner when he was pulled back by Jude. He made a low Ulp noise before following suit with Jude and peered over to see what Jude saw. "Fuck hunters!" He whispered before ducking back down again. How are we gonna get out of this...? He thought before getting jolted out of his thoughts when he saw Jude fall over. He ducked his head up again to make sure they weren't heard before turning to Jude.

"Hey are you ok?" He whispered, signing the words for him. "Yes

No

." He was concerned for him and wanted to know what jolted him so much. "Did one of those guys with you in the past?" He asked, trying to keep his voice as low as possible so they wouldn't get heard.

Admin Posts : 196 Join date : 2022-01-12 Age : 25

Jude was trying to control his breathing. He felt like he was going to start hyperventilating. A panic attack was not what they needed right now, it wouldn’t be helpful to either them, and would make too much noise.

He turned his head and looked at the man, nodding his head. He slowly lifted a shaking hands try to replicate the sign for yes. It was obvious he wasn’t good, but he didn’t want to burden the other man with his childish issues.

He nodded his head to the question, reaching up a shaking hand. He slowly pulled down the mask he always wore, showing the scar. It reached from the right edge of his lip, and scored all the the way up to just under his cheek bone. He pointed at it, before quickly replacing the mask.

Jude tried to sign the words kill, mom, and dad. His hands were shaking so bad he had to stick them into the pockets of his jacket.

He wanted nothing more than to run out there and beat the man to a pulp, but all he could do was sit there. He felt so useless, and like his parents were looking down at him with shame.

There was another sound of banging and squelching as he bashed in another infected head. They could hear the sound of him collecting spit, then spewing it onto the rotting body at his feet.

“This would be so much better if we’re actual people wouldn’t it? More of a challenge that way. I love it when they fight back,” he sneered. He laughed fully, walking away from the mushy head.

“Hwat in da hell is wrong wit ya? We don’ kill people. We only kill deaders, ya hear me?” The other man demanded.

“Yeah yeah you fucking spoil sport. Let’s just go before we get into trouble. Now that would be boring.”

They slowly made their towards the exit door of the building, the man whistling a merry tune as he walked.